I’ve recently spent a bit of time travelling with a friend in China and Thailand and its made me reconsider whether solo travel is really the best way to go. Normally I’m all for solo travel but I had such a great time on this trip that it’s made me reconsider my previous feeling that solo travel is always the best way to go. This topic has been done to death but these are just a few thoughts based on my recent experiences.
- Two heads are better than one – Decisions by committee can be good when the other person is full of good ideas on what to do. My friend is always eager to do something and having someone else reading the guidebook and finding cool things to do is great for lazy people like me.
- Someone to share funny and amazing moments with – I’ve seen some cool things on my travels and have often wished I had someone around to share the moment with. This trip was no exception and all of the funny and amazing things that happened were just a bit better because my friend was there. Plus it’s always nice to have someone to say ‘remember when…?’ to.
- Comfort during hard times – I recently had some bad news from home and being alone when that happens pretty much sucks. Having a close friend around to give a hug when you need it is almost as good as having you mum there.
- Someone to kill time with – Travel isn’t always fun and there can be a lot of downtime and delays to deal with. Having a bit of good company around makes time pass a lot quicker.
- Always have a dinner/drinking/dancing buddy – I’m not one to hit the pub alone so going out for me usually means first finding some people to go out with. This isn’t always possible though which can mean some quiet nights in when I’d rather be partying. My friend and I are on the same page when it comes to going out which meant I always had someone to drag out to the bars with me.
- Everything is cheaper – Sharing a cab is cheaper than getting one on your own, a twin room is cheaper than a single room and tours and eating and drinking can work out cheaper as well. We were taking cabs everywhere in Beijingand stayed in a twin room in Bangkok so having a buddy around meant savings for both of us.
- You have another set of skills at your disposal – Having lived in Egypt for two years, my friend is a very good bargainer. I’m pretty crap at it. Having her around meant that suddenly I was getting better prices for things than I would have gotten myself. If you’re with a friend who speaks the language, who is good at reading maps, can ride a motorbike or can do things that you can’t do, your opportunities will be expanded.
- More likely to meet people – Sure, solo travellers are more approachable, but I’d argue that I’m more likely to do the approaching when I’m with a friend. It seems a lot easier to be super outgoing when you’ve got a sidekick nearby and it helps when your friend is outgoing as well. I think in Bangkok as a group of five we mainly scared people away, but in Beijing as a pair we met loads of people.
Travelling with a friend has some big advantages and so does going solo. I think the biggest thing that going solo offers me is having time to myself which is something that I’ve only recently realised. I’m a hugely social person but I really love being able to reflect on things, write, think, draw, nerd it up on the computer and most importantly, decide when I wake up. That said, i think the advantages of having a good friend around are big ones.
It’s likely that I’ll travel with my friend again at some point and I can’t wait. I might have to lay down some ground rules this time around, but even if I end up having to sacrifice my alone time for awhile, it will be worth it.
I’m in Myanmar now (actually that’s a lie, I’m in a Starbucks in Bangkok but by the time you read this I will be in Myanmar) doing the solo travel thing for the first time in awhile and I’m curious to see how I’ll feel about going solo after having such a great time travelling with a friend.
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